Marziyeh Shahdaei, the director of projects at Iran’s National Petrochemical Company (NPC), said the company is in talks with international firms now that Tehran’s nuclear-based international sanctions have been lifted. She added that companies who entered into talks with the NPC before the removal of sanctions are now finalizing their discussions.

She said Linde and Mitsui have agreed to invest up to $4bn in yet-to-be-finalized Iranian petrochemical projects.

Iran’s current petrochemical production capacity stands at 60 million metric tons per year, but the country is planning to triple its output by 2025. This development would require at least $7-10bn worth of investments. A major part of the amount needs to be supplied by foreign finance.

Christian Bruch, a member of the Linde executive board, has said that Iran can make the most of various technological advancements in improving its petrochemical industry, thus lessening fluctuations in the market.

He said that Iran’s petrochemical industry enjoys unparalleled potential, and that it can become the country’s leading economic sector. “Iran can gain a major share in the global petrochemical market by 2025,” he added.